The junk wax era of baseball cards spanned from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s. During this time, card manufacturers greatly overproduced cards, leading to an abundance of cards on the market with little collector value. Some standout cards rose above the rest due to featuring star players or special designs. While most junk wax era cards can be purchased for pennies, here are some of the best that have retained or gained value over the years.
One of the most iconic and valuable junk wax era cards is the 1989 Ken Griffey Jr Upper Deck rookie card. Griffey was already one of the brightest young stars in baseball when Upper Deck debuted as the sport’s premier card company in 1989. His rookie card showed Griffey in glorious color with excellent photography and production quality that set Upper Deck apart. While Griffey would go on to have a Hall of Fame career, collectors recognized his star power immediately. In near mint condition, his rookie card now sells for over $1,000, making it one of the few junk wax cards worth a substantial amount.
Another star rookie who made his cardboard debut during this era was Barry Bonds of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bonds’ 1986 Topps rookie card was produced at a rate of over one million copies, yet it remains one of the most iconic and valuable cards from the time. Bonds went on to smash the single season and all-time home run records, cementing his status as one of the greatest players ever. High grade copies of his rookie now sell for around $150-200 due to his legendary career and the card’s iconic design featuring the young slugger in a Pirates uniform.
While not quite on the level of Griffey Jr. or Bonds, some other notable star rookies with cards retaining value include Mark McGwire’s 1986 Topps, Frank Thomas’ 1990 Score, and Larry Walker’s 1989 Bowman. Each of these future Hall of Famers had early cardboard that foretold their greatness. McGwire rocketed to stardom thanks partly to his monster home run race with Sammy Sosa in 1998, making his rookie a hot commodity for collectors again. Thomas and Walker also had long, productive careers that kept collector interest in their early releases high.
In addition to rookie cards of future stars, error cards from the junk wax era have also gained value due to their scarcity. In 1990, Topps released Kirby Puckett’s card twice by mistake in the same series, with one showing him in a batting stance and the other running the bases. Only a few of the batting stance version are known to exist, with gem mint copies selling for over $1,000. The same year, a Francisco Cabrera card was accidentally printed without any graphics or photo, just the blank front of the card stock. Only a handful are known, making it a true junk wax anomaly worth hundreds to the right collector.
Upper Deck is considered the premier card manufacturer of the late 1980s and early 1990s for their superb photography, card stock quality, and innovative extras like trading card inserts. Their highly sought after Ken Griffey Jr. rookie led the company to greater success. Some of their other standout highly conditioned vintage releases include Nolan Ryan’s 1992 Upper Deck, which featured one of the sport’s greatest on his quest for career strikeout number 5000; and the 1992 Derek Jeter rookie card, which was ahead of its time in predicting greatness for the future Yankees captain. Both of these Upper Deck cards can sell for over $100 in top condition.
While the overproduction of the junk wax era caused most cards to plummet in value, savvy collectors saw value in star players, innovative designs, and rare errors even at the time. Not every card from the late 80s and early 90s is worth pennies – some deservedly rose above the pack due to featuring all-time greats, special photography, and scarcity. While the era is nicknamed for flooded wax packs, the best cards show there is more than just junk to be found among vintage cardboard from when production hit its peak.
